Close your eyes for a moment, and let your imagination flow. Imagine using your favorite Android App on your TV. Now open your eyes. Can’t wait for your imagination to come to life? Well, here’s some news that will make your dreams come true.

Very soon, Android apps will be available on Google TV. Yes, dear people. The Android Market is coming to Google TV. The preview of the Google TV- add-on for the Android SDK is out and it’s just a matter of time before developers are able to build refreshingly new and perfectly crafted Android apps for Google TV.

Smarter Way of Viewing Apps

Accessing an app through Google TV will be a wholly satisfying experience for users. Traditionally, apps have been developed for the desktop or mobile devices. The user experience in both cases has different levels of interactivity and engagement appeal. With Google TV, the apps experience is taken to a whole new level. The bigger screen offers a tremendous improvement on the usability front. Also, the fact that both designers and developers can up the ante in terms of the design and interactive elements means an extremely engaging user experience.  There is absolutely no doubt that apps usage with Google TV has all the workings of becoming a revolution.

It’s not too difficult to visualize a future in which Android Apps for Google TV have scaled the popularity charts and are in great demand owing to their ability for providing a visually impressive experience that takes user engagement to a whole new level altogether.

Ability to reach a wider audience

Get ready for a two-pronged strategy by businesses and individuals alike for promoting products and services. The first strategic attack will be through the mobile platforms, wherein custom built Android Apps will create space in the minds of the target audience. This will be given an added fillip by the second strategic masterstroke, which is promotion through made-for-Google TV apps. Taken together this strategy will help businesses reach a wider audience.

With the kind of benefits that such Android apps for Google TV will bring to the table, there is every chance that Android apps for Google TV will become the first choice of everybody who wants Android apps for promotional purposes. The two-pronged strategy can fast become a single powerful strategy that can captivate users and help a business’s promotional efforts.

Don’t you just love surprises! Tell me you don’t love it when something happens that doesn’t just surprise you, but jolts you and hit’s your sweet spot. Apple recognized this inherent human tendency of loving surprises and has made it an integral part of its product promotion model. Apple arguably is one of the most secretive tech companies in the world and literally adheres to a code of silence as far as its product development and promotion is concerned.

Experts believe that it’s Apple’s secretiveness that in large part, has contributed towards its fantastic success.

Restricted Information Flow Creates Hype

Most companies in the world can take a tip or two from Apple for creating the perfect buzz around a product before its launch. The company creates hype by making available very limited information to its target customers. It at all, they are provided with a few glimpses of the products; it can be a word about a new feature or a technical specification – just enough to get the customers to start thinking. Mostly, the company has a habit of providing details right before the product launch. Look how Apple marketed the iPhone. By the time, the product actually arrived on the market; its success was a foregone conclusion.

“Everything’s perfect”

No device is perfect. It has its bugs and requires fixes periodically. But, there is a section of die hard Apple users who think Apple’s operating systems are perfection personified. The fact that Apple is not upfront about the threats that users might face, permeates a feeling of confidence in Apple products and users begin to believe in the maxim ‘no news is good news’. Now compare this state of affairs to the way Apple’s rivals go about handling their fixes. Take for example the case of Microsoft. Its fixes and patches are big news.  The ‘almost hidden’ and barely discussed Apple fixes, on the other hand, actually give rise to an erroneous belief that there are absolutely no fixes required. This is yet another reason for its popularity.

Lessening chances of backfire

The fact that Apple doesn’t make early announcements of its future plans means it’s actually keeping all bases covered. It reduces chances of going back to the drawing board if any of the features that it announces are not really up-to-the mark. It also reduces chances of any embarrassment that might result from the company being unable to integrate some of the announced features in the final product.  Apple only makes an announcement when its product is about the hit the market. So, users are unaware of its list of features, technical specifications etc, and only know about them when the product is up for grabs.

By following a strictly enforced culture of providing very little information, and that too infrequently, has benefited Apple in more ways than one. It provides the company with the element of surprise and also given it the ability to creating a surge of expectation at the right time – that is, when the products are available on the market.  Such an approach is difficult to replicate and many Apple wannabes have faltered at the doorstep. It requires a combination of marketing sangfroid, an unshakeable confidence in your own products and a perfect understanding of a target customer’s mindset and expectations to leverage secrecy for popularity – Apple has all this abundance.

The ailing Steve Jobs has finally put in his papers. And with this, comes the end of an era – ‘The Steve Jobs Era’. An era which saw this extraordinarily gifted and determined individual, almost, single handedly, make Apple the technology leader that it is today. His visionary approach towards development of technology and sheer marketing genius led to Apple’s products such as the iPod, iPhone and the iPad achieving iconic status.

It was Steve Jobs who brought in a spirit of innovation to Apple and spearheaded the development of its hugely popular products. Naturally, his departure has led to questions about the future of Apple. After all, Apple is running neck-and-neck with Exxon Mobile for the title of the world’s most valuable company.

The question uppermost in everybody’s minds and that includes industry watchers, tech geeks, investors, employees and the man on the street, is whether Apple can retain its innovative edge and the literal stranglehold the company has on the market of smartphones and tablet devices.

No Impact in the Short Term

With plenty of products in the pipeline, Steve Jobs’ resignation won’t make an impact. Apple has a well- entrenched product roadmap and this ensures that the company can look towards an equally lucrative future in a post Steve Jobs era. Also, its executives, who have worked closely with Steve Jobs, will take his vision forward. 

It’s impossible to predict what the future holds for the company, but its strategy for the next decade or so has been laid out by Steve Jobs. For now, there is no real reason for worry. The company’s future looks secure.

The Mr. Tim Cook Era

As the next CEO of Apple, can Mr. Tim Cook show the same passion for creativity, promotional savoir-faire, and designing excellence that defined Steve Jobs’ approach towards product development? It’s too early to answer this question either one way or the other, but having a look at Mr. Cook’s credentials does allow one to draw a picture.

Mr. Cook has been with Apple for more than decade, 13 years to be precise, and till recently was its COO; in charge of Apple’s global sales, operations and development of strategic reseller and supplier relationships. He is definitely an operations expert and has proved his mettle by successfully handling various responsibilities with the company. It remains to be seen whether his technological instincts are as sharp as those of his predecessor. But, it wouldn’t be fair to evaluate Mr. Cook’s performance through the prism of Steve Jobs’ accomplishments. It’s his experience, performance and the trust that Jobs has in his abilities that has elevated him to this position.  He needs to be given time to ease into it; after all, he has tremendously big boots to fill.

Early indications are definitely promising and the fact that Steve Jobs hasn’t left Apple, and will act as Apple’s guiding force in his capacity as the Chairman of the Board is good news for Apple supporters. So, it doesn’t seem likely that Apple will lose its focus on innovation, any time soon.

It will be fair to say that 'user experience design' impacts the effectiveness of a website in a big way. In an increasingly competitive online world, where millions of websites compete for attracting a user’s attention, 'user experience' provided by a website, in large part, determines its success or failure.

What is User Experience Design?

You must have come across plenty of definitions of user experience design that explain this term with a lot of technicalities thrown in. But let’s take the technical jargon out of the equation and focus on simplifying its meaning.

In a nutshell, the various aspects of user experience design ensure improved usability of the website, web application or software product. When it comes to this concept being used in  website development , the focus of attention is on improving the visitor’s interaction with the websites and enhancing the usability quotient of the sites.  This concept involves the use of various designing and development factors that improve the overall user experience with respect to a particular website.

Let’s take an example of a site that sells designer T-Shirts. It caters to a younger audience. Let’s call it 'our website'. For purposes of better explanation, let’s not get into the complexities of out-of-the-box and largely unique ecommerce websites. Let’s explore the user experience design angle, from the perspective of a basic ecommerce website that follows a simple design and usability approach.

Consistency

Be it a website that is simply designed, with traditional features or a website that is visually striking and uses unconventional features; consistency is the driving force for improving user experience. Consistency includes each and every aspect of the website including, web design, content, functionality, features, navigations and all other elements that go into the making of a website.

Navigability

Navigation is an important functional attribute of all websites. But, it assumes immense significance in ecommerce sites. Now, when a visitor comes to the site selling T-shirts, they aren’t very interested in knowing more about what T-shirts are all about. What they are interested in is that they are taken to the T-shirt listing and details page as soon as possible. They want to get started on the selection and shopping process quickly. So, ideal user friendly navigation will take visitors to the product listing page in just a single click. Easy-to-use, consistent navigation, that doesn’t confuse and prompts visitors to take the next step in the shopping-cycle, is an integral part of improving user-experience.

Structural Flow

Maintaining a proper website structure for the front end and back end, plays an important role in getting a positive reaction from visitors. In the context of our website, a proper flow can be used to offer information about the company and its products (T-Shirts) and also putting a 'call to action’'button on the home page itself. The homepage must offer clear information as to the buying process, special offers, if any, and take visitors to the shopping page in a single click. The design and content of our website must have a single purpose – Take the visitors to the shopping page and get them to buy the T-Shirts quickly and conveniently.

Use Experience Design is a concept whose use encourages the visitor to react positively to a given website. In the case of our website, the use of this designing principle will ensure better conversions.  So we can say without any doubt whatsoever that user experience design helps achieve the objectives of the website by aligning the design of the website with the expectations of the target audience.

There is very little doubt that with Google Plus, Google wants to challenge Facebook’s monopoly in online social networking. It’s also no surprise that businesses are sitting up and taking notice.  As it’s a whole new platform and a work in progress, businesses are still wondering about how they can leverage its potential for their benefit.

Now, here’s the bad news. Businesses have to keep wondering as, in its present form, it’s less than a perfect match for any business need or requirement. But wait! Before you drown in the depths of despair, here’s the good news. The guys at Google are hard at work, developing innovative and unique features and add-ons that will make Google Plus a perfect choice for your business.

Google is trying to offer a whole new experience in social sharing and aims to make it more realistic. Currently, you need to get invited to Google plus as its being unveiled in waves. This is because developers want to get an idea as to how small groups of people (who have got an invite) are using this platform. By doing so, they want to keep fine tuning this social networking project in order to ensure that it meets the needs and requirements of the users, perfectly.

Now, we know that Google has encouraged businesses to wait for some time before they start using Google+. But, what if you don’t want to wait? What do you do, if you want to be the first out of the blocks when it comes to using this social initiative by Google?

Here’s what you can do. You begin by signing up and for this to happen you need an invite. There are plenty of forums out there, where you can request an invite for Google+. Some kind soul will definitely help you out.

Now that you have got an invite you can start.

Profile Creation

Now, Google+ is primarily for consumers. So, you need to begin by uploading a picture. Here, it will be a good idea to upload your picture. If you can, wear a T-shirt with your company’s logo or name on it. After that, you need to fill in the details of your profile. Don’t be overwhelmed by all the information Google Plus is asking for, it’s all in a good cause for your business. Now, you can upload videos that are related to your business in some way or form. Don’t have a video? Well, go and create one as a well- made video enhances your business credibility like nothing else can.

Adding Friends

Google plus is a social platform, so you need to keep adding friends to your profile. You can start off by adding your friends and family and then start connecting with those people, who you think will be interested in knowing more about your products and services. Keep at it and have patience. Remember, that all you need to develop is a network. If you keep adding interested people to your friends list, very soon, you are going to befriend quite a number of people, who will all be a part of your target audience.

Joining and/or creating conversation

Once, you have made all these friends on Google+, you now need to follow them and be a part of their conversation. Making sensible contributions to a particular conversation thread will enhance your reputation. There is a good chance that your friends will look forward to hearing your views about a particular subject. It’s not necessary that you join a conversation pertinent to your business. It could be about anything. If you have something to say, join in.

What’s more, you can even begin a conversation. Starting a conversation on any social networking is all about sharing your thoughts with others. It doesn’t necessarily have to be anything about your business. If during the course of the conversation, you can mention something about your products and services, well and good. But, the purpose of joining and/or starting a conversation is to get your friends engaged in your profile, so that they follow you regularly.

Your promotion begins

What you did earlier was create a base for your promotional efforts. One of the easier ways of promotion is to link the posts you make on Google+, with your business website or blog. This will sow the seeds for generating interest in your products and services. Or, you could promote your business by adding a Google Plus button on your website. With this, you are encouraging people to click on this button, if they like the content on your site. This will not only help you reach a wider audience, but it also helps you generate more traffic to your website.

You might wonder how all this is different from what you are doing on other social networking sites. Well, your doubts are natural, but you must understand that this is Google that we are talking about – the most popular search engine in the world. Also, as mentioned right at the beginning of the post, developers are working on business centric features and you will find them on this platform soon enough. But, why wait for these features. Getting your business up and running on Google Plus with the above mentioned pointers will give you a head start as compared to businesses that prefer to wait.